Where is the iCal link in Google Calendar?

Open Google Calendar in a browser on a computer, go to Settings, pick the calendar under 'Settings for my calendars', open 'Integrate calendar', and copy the address under 'Secret address in iCal format'. The phone apps do not show it.

Is the Google Calendar secret address safe to share?

No. Anyone who has it can read that whole calendar, for as long as the address exists, and there is no way to see who has used it. Treat it like a password. If it leaks, press Reset next to it in Google Calendar — that issues a new address and kills the old one.

What is the difference between the public address and the secret address?

The public address only works if you have also made the calendar public, which lists it for anyone. The secret address works on a private calendar, because the long random string in the URL is what stands in for signing in. For a wall display you want the secret address.

Why can I not see 'Secret address in iCal format'?

On a work, school or organisation account an administrator can switch secret addresses off for everyone. If the section is missing, that is usually why. A personal Google account is the simplest way round it.

Does the iCal link update automatically?

Yes. It is a live feed, not a one-off export — whatever you change in Google Calendar shows up the next time something fetches the address. It is read-only, so nothing that reads it can change your calendar.

How to Get Your Google Calendar iCal Link (the Secret Address)

Google Calendar's iCal link is called the secret address, and it lives under Settings → your calendar → Integrate calendar. You can only get it in a browser on a computer; the phone apps do not show it.

Here are the four steps, then what the link is and why it needs looking after.

Get the link

Open Google Calendar in a browser on a computer.
Open Settings — the gear in the top right corner, then Settings in the menu.
In the left sidebar, under Settings for my calendars, choose the calendar you want. (You can also get here by hovering over the calendar in the main sidebar and picking Settings and sharing from its ⋮ menu.)
Scroll down to Integrate calendar and copy the address under Secret address in iCal format.

That is the whole job. The address looks like this:

https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/you%40gmail.com/private-xxxx/basic.ics

The real one has a long random string where private-xxxx is. Everything after private- is the part that matters.

What the link actually is

It is a live, read-only feed of that one calendar. Anything that can read it sees your events update as you change them, and nothing that reads it can write back. That is why a wall display, a dashboard or another calendar app asks for this rather than for your password: you are handing over a view, not an account.

It is also why the address is long and random. The random part is the login. There is no sign-in step, so whoever holds the URL is treated as you, indefinitely, and Google has no way to tell you who has used it. Treat the address exactly like a password:

Do not put it in a shared document, a screenshot, a public issue or a group chat.
If it does get out, open the same Integrate calendar screen and press Reset next to the secret address. Google issues a new one and the old one stops working immediately — which also means anything you had pointed at the old address needs the new one.

One calendar per link

The secret address covers one calendar, not your whole account. If your family's events are spread across a personal calendar, a school calendar and a partner's calendar, you need one address from each. Most tools that read them, DinkyDash included, merge several feeds into a single agenda.

Repeat the four steps for each calendar in the Settings for my calendars list.

If the section is not there

Two things hide it:

A work, school or organisation account. An administrator can switch external sharing off for everyone, and when they have, the Secret address in iCal format row simply is not on the page. There is no way round it from your side. A personal Google account is the usual answer — make a family calendar there and invite your work account to the events that matter.
A calendar somebody else owns. A calendar shared with you has no secret address of yours to hand out. Ask the owner for theirs, or use their public address if the calendar is a public one.

Put it on a screen

A calendar link on its own does nothing. The point of getting it is to show the calendar somewhere the family will actually look — a tablet in the hall, an old TV, a small screen on the kitchen wall.

Which screen? An old iPad or an Android tablet is the cheapest good panel, a Raspberry Pi the tidiest, and a smart TV or Fire TV will show it on the big screen. There is one device it does not work on, and the Echo Show page says why.

DinkyDash is free, open-source software that does exactly that: paste the link and it shows today's events on a wall screen, alongside a rotating chore chart, birthday countdowns and a daily line written each morning. There is no Google sign-in — the link is the whole connection, and it can only read.

To add it:

Open Settings → Calendars → Add a calendar.
Give it a name and paste the address into iCal link.
Press Check this link. It says how many events it found and what the next one is, so you know it works before you save.

If your own calendar also holds work meetings you would rather not put on the kitchen wall, fill in Only show events shared with and give the other parent's email address. Only the events they are invited to reach the screen. The getting started guide has the detail.

Two things people get wrong

An http:// version of the address. Some older guides suggest editing the URL by hand. Do not — the address is a password, and plain http puts it on the network in the clear. DinkyDash refuses http links for that reason. Copy what Google gives you.

Confusing it with the public address. The same Integrate calendar screen also lists a public address and an embed code. Those only work on a calendar you have made public, which means anybody can find it. The secret address is the one that works on a private calendar, and it is the one you want.

Other calendars

Apple iCloud Calendar — turn on Public Calendar and copy the link
Outlook and Microsoft 365 — publish the calendar, then take the ICS link
Cozi — Settings → Shared Cozi Calendars

Any of them, or several at once, merge into one agenda. The full setup guide takes it from here — running the board on your computer first, then moving it onto a screen that stays on the wall.

Last updated 2026-09-08.